Sebastian Münster (1489–1552) - Cosmographia Universalis...

This original sheet is a precious Renaissance page drawn from the inner sections of the fourth book of the Latin edition of 1550 of Sebastian Münster’s Cosmographia universalis, printed in Basel by the publisher Heinrich Petri. The front of the page (bearing the header DE TVRCIS and the page numbering p. 1116) opens by recalling the dramatic defeat suffered by the Western Crusaders in the historic Battle of Nicopolis (Strages apud Nicopolim), which profoundly shaped Balkan geopolitical borders and pushed the Turks toward Hungarian territories. Immediately below unfolds the chapter MAHOMETVS HOC NOMINE PRIMVS, SEXTVS Turcarum rex (Cap. LXVI), dedicated to the rise of Sultan Mahomet I (Mahometvs), who managed to reunify the empire torn apart by civil wars by subduing Wallachia, Macedonia and the ancient kingdom of Bosnia (Regnum Bosnense instituitur), finally establishing his seat at Adrianople. The lower column hosts the opening of the chapter AMVRATHVS HOC NOMINE SECVNDVS, VVLGO Moratbeg (Cap. LXVII), focused on the reign of Murad II (Amurathus), remembered for his campaigns in Thrace, the siege of Thessalonica, and the subjugation of the Peloponnese, Epirus and Illyria. The visual composition of the front is superbly enriched by the finely engraved woodcut portrait of Sultan Mahomet I in ceremonial Eastern dress. Turning the page, the back (bearing at the top the heading LIBER IIII and the page numbering p. 1115) dives into the tumultuous earlier chronicles of the Near East, describing the epic clash with the Asian armies led by the Mongol commander Tamerlane (Tamerlanus). The Latin text recounts the devastations inflicted by the latter in Asia Minor, Syria and Egypt, and the dramatic capture of Sultan Bayezid I, described as being held in chains inside a golden cage (Turcarum rex in cauea circūvehitur). Münster dwells on Tamerlane’s famous psychological strategies and on the use of colored tents (white, red and black) during sieges to signal the different phases of clemency or total slaughter reserved for enemy cities. The lower portion then opens the chapter CALAPINVS QVINTVS TVRCARVM REX, ET MOYfes frater eius (Cap. LXV), examining the harsh internal struggles among Bayezid’s sons for the throne and the first clashes along the Danube against the Christian forces of King Sigismund. Of exceptional collectible interest is the presence of antique marginal typographical glosses that highlight the most significant passages of this epic military saga. Dimensions 30 x 20 cm It will be shipped by courier.

估價:$168.08

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